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Monthly Archives: January 2018

Study – All fossil-fuel vehicles will vanish in 8 years in twin ‘death spiral’ for big oil and big autos

All fossil-fuel vehicles will vanish in 8 years in twin ‘death spiral’ for big oil and big autos, says study that’s shocking the industries. This speedy revolution, a Stanford economist says, will be driven by technology, not climate policies — and while his timing may be off a few years, there is little doubt about the direction..No more petrol or diesel cars, buses, or trucks will be sold anywhere in the world within eight years. The entire market for land transport will switch to electrification, leading to a collapse of oil prices and the demise of the petroleum industry as we have known it for a century. This is the futuristic forecast by Stanford University economist Tony Seba. His report, with the deceptively bland title Rethinking Transportation 2020-2030, has gone viral in green circles and is causing spasms of anxiety in the established industries.”

World Bank Report Finds Rise in Global Wealth, but Inequality Persists

“Global wealth grew significantly over the past two decades but per capita wealth declined or stagnated in more than two dozen countries in various income brackets, says a new World Bank report. Going beyond traditional measures such as GDP, the report uses wealth to monitor countries’ economic progress and sustainability. The Changing Wealth of Nations… Continue Reading

State of the States 2018: Broadband, Cybersecurity Surface as Priorities

GovTech.com: “With a wave of gubernatorial elections on the horizon later this year, many states’ top elected leaders were nearing the end of their terms as they delivered their most important policy speech of the year, the State of the State address. So understandably, many seized the opportunity to reflect on their accomplishments while in… Continue Reading

No Time to Wait: Building a Public Service for the 21st Century

No Time to Wait: Building a Public Service for the 21st Century. A White Paper by a Panel of the National Academy of Public Administration. “What the federal government most needs, we believe, is a human capital system built on a sturdy three-legged stool: mission first, principles always, and accountability for both. We need a… Continue Reading

How ‘Fake News’ Changed The New York Times – and Didn’t

“When the country’s most venerable paper found itself in President Trump’s crosshairs, new considerations ensued – and instinct kicked in. New York Times media columnist Jim Rutenberg offers this exclusive, behind-the-scenes look.” Those five words – the facts speak for themselves – continue to be the driving principle of The Times’s coverage in the Trump… Continue Reading

National Academy of Public Administration Panel White Paper On Strengthening Organizational Health and Performance in Government

“A panel of experts at the National Academy of Public Administration today released a new white paper, Strengthening Organizational Health and Performance in Government, which offers recommendations for a new management improvement approach that would strategically transform the federal government into an organization that learns from experience, constructively engages employees at all levels, and continually… Continue Reading

Survey – GDPR requests to take thousands of hours a month

ComputerWeekly.com: “UK and European businesses expect to spend hundreds or thousands of hours a month dealing with customer queries about the upcoming European Union’s (EU’s) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)…Meanwhile, most organisations aren’t confident they know where all their data is stored and most aren’t aware of the fines, which can run into millions of… Continue Reading

18F Guide – Getting prepared to prototype

Mark Headd: “In product development, we often use prototypes — small, lightweight, temporary applications or artifacts — to understand user needs and reduce risk. Prototypes are a great way to test out ideas or approaches before you actually commit to building anything. Although more people are recognizing the value of prototyping, governments are not always… Continue Reading

NASEM Annotations to 2018 State of the Union and Fact Checks

National Academies of Sciences and Engineering: “Since 2009, we’ve taken the transcript of the State of the Union and added in publications relevant to the President’s speech. It’s our way of spotlighting our work: providing independent, evidence-based research that addresses the wide variety of challenges and goals of our country and beyond. Below, you’ll find… Continue Reading

Ensuring Access to Information: International Law’s Contribution to Global Justice

Benvenisti, Eyal, Ensuring Access to Information: International Law’s Contribution to Global Justice (December 1, 2017). GlobalTrust Working Paper Series 2017-09; University of Cambridge Faculty of Law Research Paper No. 17/2018. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3106885 “This essay examines the role of international law is in promoting indirectly global (and domestic) distributive justice. This focus on institutions… Continue Reading